ADVERSE-EFFECTS OF NEXT BIRTH, GENDER, AND FAMILY COMPOSITION ON CHILD SURVIVAL IN RURAL BANGLADESH

Child survival from ages one to five in Matlab, Bangladesh is related to the length of the birth-to-subsequent conception interval (BCI), fa mily composition, health and family planning interventions, and socioe conomic conditions. The BCI relationship consists of short-term effect s (related to the mother's pregnancy or the presence of a very young s ibling) and long-term effects (associated with having a 6-18 month old younger sibling). Their impact is apparent at longer intervals than p reviously thought. Girls with at least one sister are especially vulne rable and all girls have greater risks when the next child comes along . We conclude that the health and family planning programme improves l ife chances of children, especially girls, directly through provision of care, and indirectly through prevention of unwanted births and long er child spacing. The differential allocation of resources to children , indicated by the strong relationship of child survival to the compos ition of the older sibling set, may indicate previously unrecognized r eceptivity to family planning.